[Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

Werdck · 2025-10-02 10:17:05

My laptop's wifi has a very low range and speed.
This happens most noticably with 5GHz networks, but 2.4 GHz APs are also affected by low speeds.

I tried completely reinstalling linux-firmware and linux-firmware-intel via

pacman -Rns linux-firmware{,-intel} && pacman -Syu linux-firmware{,-intel}

this did not help.

Multiple combinations of options were also tried:

# /etc/modprobe.d/iwlwifi.conf 

#options iwlwifi 11n_disable=8 
#options iwlwifi power_save=0 d0i3_disable=0 uapsd_disable=0
#options iwlwifi power_save=0 d0i3_disable=0 uapsd_disable=0 11n_disable=8
#options iwlwifi power_save=0 d0i3_disable=0 uapsd_disable=0 11n_disable=8 power_level=5 disable_11ac=0 swcrypto=1
#options iwlwifi power_save=0 d0i3_disable=0 uapsd_disable=0 11n_disable=8 disable_11ac=0
#options iwlwifi power_level=5 11n_disable=8

# ArchWiki
#options iwlwifi 11n_disable=1 swcrypto=1

Currently they are all commented out, because none of the lines improved anything.

System specs:

# dmesg | grep '0000:00:14.3'

[    0.449034] pci 0000:00:14.3: [8086:54f0] type 00 class 0x028000 PCIe Root Complex Integrated Endpoint
[    0.449122] pci 0000:00:14.3: BAR 0 [mem 0x6001154000-0x6001157fff 64bit]
[    0.449239] pci 0000:00:14.3: PME# supported from D0 D3hot D3cold
[   13.558416] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: enabling device (0000 -> 0002)
[   13.568683] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Detected crf-id 0x1300202, cnv-id 0x80400 wfpm id 0x80000030
[   13.568723] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: PCI dev 54f0/4234, rev=0x370, rfid=0x105110
[   13.568726] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Detected Intel(R) Wireless-AC 9560
[   13.568818] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Direct firmware load for iwlwifi-so-a0-jf-b0-89.ucode failed with error -2
[   13.568845] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Direct firmware load for iwlwifi-so-a0-jf-b0-88.ucode failed with error -2
[   13.568862] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Direct firmware load for iwlwifi-so-a0-jf-b0-87.ucode failed with error -2
[   13.568879] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Direct firmware load for iwlwifi-so-a0-jf-b0-86.ucode failed with error -2
[   13.568895] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Direct firmware load for iwlwifi-so-a0-jf-b0-85.ucode failed with error -2
[   13.568911] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Direct firmware load for iwlwifi-so-a0-jf-b0-84.ucode failed with error -2
[   13.568927] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Direct firmware load for iwlwifi-so-a0-jf-b0-83.ucode failed with error -2
[   13.568945] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Direct firmware load for iwlwifi-so-a0-jf-b0-82.ucode failed with error -2
[   13.568961] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Direct firmware load for iwlwifi-so-a0-jf-b0-81.ucode failed with error -2
[   13.568977] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Direct firmware load for iwlwifi-so-a0-jf-b0-80.ucode failed with error -2
[   13.568993] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Direct firmware load for iwlwifi-so-a0-jf-b0-79.ucode failed with error -2
[   13.569009] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Direct firmware load for iwlwifi-so-a0-jf-b0-78.ucode failed with error -2
[   13.574368] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: TLV_FW_FSEQ_VERSION: FSEQ Version: 0.0.2.36
[   13.574719] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: loaded firmware version 77.f92b5fed.0 so-a0-jf-b0-77.ucode op_mode iwlmvm
[   14.152336] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: WFPM_UMAC_PD_NOTIFICATION: 0x1f
[   14.152380] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: WFPM_LMAC2_PD_NOTIFICATION: 0x1f
[   14.152392] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: WFPM_AUTH_KEY_0: 0x80
[   14.152402] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: CNVI_SCU_SEQ_DATA_DW9: 0x0
[   14.152450] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Detected RF JF, rfid=0x105110
[   14.153650] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: RFIm is deactivated, reason = 4
[   14.211017] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: base HW address: 9c:29:76:a7:47:1b
[   14.414155] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: timeout waiting for FW reset ACK (inta_hw=0x0, reset_done 0)
[   14.414269] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Start IWL Error Log Dump:
[   14.414283] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Transport status: 0x0000000A, valid: 6
[   14.414298] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Loaded firmware version: 77.f92b5fed.0 so-a0-jf-b0-77.ucode
[   14.414315] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000084 | NMI_INTERRUPT_UNKNOWN       
[   14.414329] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00A002F0 | trm_hw_status0
[   14.414343] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | trm_hw_status1
[   14.414356] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x004D2A06 | branchlink2
[   14.414369] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x004C92BE | interruptlink1
[   14.414381] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x004C92BE | interruptlink2
[   14.414394] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00011F5A | data1
[   14.414406] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x01000000 | data2
[   14.414418] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | data3
[   14.414429] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | beacon time
[   14.414442] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x0001BBBF | tsf low
[   14.414454] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | tsf hi
[   14.414465] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | time gp1
[   14.414477] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x000271C0 | time gp2
[   14.414489] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000001 | uCode revision type
[   14.414503] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x0000004D | uCode version major
[   14.414516] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0xF92B5FED | uCode version minor
[   14.414529] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000370 | hw version
[   14.414542] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00480002 | board version
[   14.414554] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x802CFF00 | hcmd
[   14.414566] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00020000 | isr0
[   14.414577] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | isr1
[   14.414589] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x58F00002 | isr2
[   14.414601] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00C0000C | isr3
[   14.414613] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | isr4
[   14.414625] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | last cmd Id
[   14.414637] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00011F5A | wait_event
[   14.414650] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | l2p_control
[   14.414662] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | l2p_duration
[   14.414674] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | l2p_mhvalid
[   14.414686] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | l2p_addr_match
[   14.414699] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000009 | lmpm_pmg_sel
[   14.414711] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | timestamp
[   14.414724] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000028 | flow_handler
[   14.414787] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | ADVANCED_SYSASSERT
[   14.414801] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | umac branchlink1
[   14.414814] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | umac branchlink2
[   14.414827] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | umac interruptlink1
[   14.414840] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | umac interruptlink2
[   14.415391] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | umac data1
[   14.415903] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | umac data2
[   14.416374] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | umac data3
[   14.416803] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | umac major
[   14.417224] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | umac minor
[   14.417640] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | frame pointer
[   14.418053] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | stack pointer
[   14.418473] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | last host cmd
[   14.418960] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | isr status reg
[   14.419403] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: IML/ROM dump:
[   14.419805] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000B03 | IML/ROM error/state
[   14.420245] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x0000502A | IML/ROM data1
[   14.420682] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000080 | IML/ROM WFPM_AUTH_KEY_0
[   14.421111] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Fseq Registers:
[   14.421533] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x20000000 | FSEQ_ERROR_CODE
[   14.421958] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x80330000 | FSEQ_TOP_INIT_VERSION
[   14.422381] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00010009 | FSEQ_CNVIO_INIT_VERSION
[   14.422803] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x0000A384 | FSEQ_OTP_VERSION
[   14.423228] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x4FEA5118 | FSEQ_TOP_CONTENT_VERSION
[   14.423651] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x4552414E | FSEQ_ALIVE_TOKEN
[   14.424066] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00080400 | FSEQ_CNVI_ID
[   14.424483] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x01300202 | FSEQ_CNVR_ID
[   14.424898] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00080400 | CNVI_AUX_MISC_CHIP
[   14.425313] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x01300202 | CNVR_AUX_MISC_CHIP
[   14.425716] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x0000485B | CNVR_SCU_SD_REGS_SD_REG_DIG_DCDC_VTRIM
[   14.426164] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x0BADCAFE | CNVR_SCU_SD_REGS_SD_REG_ACTIVE_VDIG_MIRROR
[   14.426559] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00000000 | FSEQ_PREV_CNVIO_INIT_VERSION
[   14.426952] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x00330000 | FSEQ_WIFI_FSEQ_VERSION
[   14.427341] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x099AD96D | FSEQ_BT_FSEQ_VERSION
[   14.427732] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: 0x000000FD | FSEQ_CLASS_TP_VERSION
[   14.428135] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: UMAC CURRENT PC: 0x8047e450
[   14.428538] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: LMAC1 CURRENT PC: 0xd0
[   14.428935] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: WRT: Collecting data: ini trigger 4 fired (delay=0ms).
[   14.885227] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: iwlmvm doesn't allow to disable HW crypto, check swcrypto module parameter
[   36.172096] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: WFPM_UMAC_PD_NOTIFICATION: 0x1f
[   36.172211] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: WFPM_LMAC2_PD_NOTIFICATION: 0x1f
[   36.172246] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: WFPM_AUTH_KEY_0: 0x80
[   36.172295] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: CNVI_SCU_SEQ_DATA_DW9: 0x0
[   36.173204] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: RFIm is deactivated, reason = 4
[   36.236925] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: Registered PHC clock: iwlwifi-PTP, with index: 0

# uname -a
uname -a
Linux hostname 6.16.8-arch3-1 #1 SMP PREEMPT_DYNAMIC Mon, 22 Sep 2025 22:08:35 +0000 x86_64 GNU/Linux

The issue also happens on linux-lts and linux-zen.

# lspci
00:00.0 Host bridge: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N Processor Host Bridge/DRAM Registers
00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N [UHD Graphics]
00:04.0 Signal processing controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake Innovation Platform Framework Processor Participant
00:0d.0 USB controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N Thunderbolt 4 USB Controller
00:12.0 Serial controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N Integrated Sensor Hub
00:12.6 Serial bus controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N Generic SPI (GSPI) Controller #2
00:14.0 USB controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N PCH USB 3.2 Gen 2x1 (10 Gb/s) xHCI Host Controller
00:14.2 RAM memory: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N PCH Shared SRAM
00:14.3 Network controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N PCH CNVi WiFi
00:15.0 Serial bus controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N PCH I2C Controller
00:15.1 Serial bus controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N PCH I2C Controller
00:15.2 Serial bus controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N PCH I2C Controller
00:15.3 Serial bus controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N PCH I2C Controller
00:16.0 Communication controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N PCH HECI Controller
00:1a.0 SD Host controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N eMMC Controller
00:1d.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N PCI Express Root Port #9
00:1f.0 ISA bridge: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N PCH eSPI Controller
00:1f.3 Audio device: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N PCH High Definition Audio Controller
00:1f.4 SMBus: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N SMBus
00:1f.5 Serial bus controller: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-N SPI (flash) Controller
01:00.0 Non-Volatile memory controller: Kingston Technology Company, Inc. NV2 NVMe SSD [SM2267XT] (DRAM-less) (rev 03)

Last edited by Werdck (2025-10-08 21:38:25)

seth · 2025-10-02 18:57:44

Don't grep dmesg, there's a firmware crash but that doesn't explain "very low range and speed", please post your complete system journal for the boot:

sudo journalctl -b | curl -F 'file=@-' 0x0.st

to illustrate the overall setup and situation.
if you're using NM and wpa_supplicant they'll log network quality levels, otherwise you might have to check those manually, https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Networ … ireless#iw (though iwd and wpa_supplicant both can be queried)

If this is really a poor signal situation and not a hardware one (tried sth. like https://grml.org/ for comparism) I'd bet on power saving, see https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Power_ … interfaces next to the parameters you've already tried.

Werdck · 2025-10-03 17:06:07

The journalctl is here: http://0x0.st/KM4p.txt

Signal strength

# iw dev wlan0 station dump -v
        [...]
	signal:  	-50 [-50, -53] dBm
	signal avg:	-52 dBm
	beacon signal avg:	-50 dBm
        [...]

Regarding power saving, I have now tried modprobe options:

options iwlmvm power_scheme=1
options cfg80211 cfg80211_disable_40mhz_24ghz=Y
options iwlwifi 11n_disable=8 power_level=5 power_save=0 uapsd_disable=1

which doesn't make a difference unfortunately.

"Low speed" means ~1 Mbps on 2.4GHz where other devices get ~95 Mbps.
5 GHz is not able to connect, if it is even seen, while other devices can easily connect.

Last edited by Werdck (2025-10-03 17:11:38)

seth · 2025-10-03 18:51:01

-52dBm isn't great but also not terrible and you should™ get a stable signal on that.

5 GHz is not able to connect

Please don't paraphrase, https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=57855 - post the actual IO of an attempt.

There's a firmware crash early on but the NIC effortlessly connects to the AP.

Okt 03 18:37:09 hostname kernel:  nvme0n1: p1 p2 p3 p4 p5

Is there another OS? Parallel windows?

I have now tried modprobe options:

Why are you constraining the 11n support and limit the channel width to 20MHz?
You're nudging the system towards 802.11g performance… also uapsd_disable=1 is more aggressive power saving than the default uapsd_disable=3

For clarification: you're getting 1 mega BIT per second, not 1 mega BYTE per second?

Last check: what DNS server do you use (cat /etc/resolv.conf) and what if you change that to 1.1.1.1 (cloudflare) or 8.8.8.8 (google) - we'll deal w/ the privacy concerns etc. if this actually pans out to be the relevant factor.

Werdck · 2025-10-04 10:54:01

Is there another OS? Parallel windows?

I have a dual boot of Windows 11, yes. It is used very rarely, and I can delete the partitions if that might solve my issue.

Regarding modprobe options:
I tried those that seemed to help other people, prioritizing range over speed for the time being because I wanted to make sure that there are no problems with signal strength. Limiting channel width to 20MHz was an attempt at avoiding issues with channel overlap.

For clarification: you're getting 1 mega BIT per second, not 1 mega BYTE per second?

I looked at different bench scripts this time, turns out it is indeed 1 megabyte per second. bench.sh writes "Mbps", but that seems to be incorrect.

pacman -Syu

showed an average (Total) of 857 KiB/s for the upgrade right now.

$ cat /etc/resolv.conf
# Generated by dhcpcd from wlan0.dhcp
# /etc/resolv.conf.head can replace this line
domain fritz.box
nameserver 94.140.14.14
nameserver 94.140.15.15

Using 8.8.8.8 (Google) or 1.1.1.1 (Cloudflare) didn't make a difference.
iPerf run on the same network:

$ iperf3 -c 192.168.178.X
Connecting to host 192.168.178.X, port 5201
[  5] local 192.168.178.Y port 54540 connected to 192.168.178.X port 5201
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr  Cwnd
[  5]   0.00-1.00   sec  2.38 MBytes  19.9 Mbits/sec   10   48.1 KBytes       
[  5]   1.00-2.00   sec  1.38 MBytes  11.5 Mbits/sec    0    113 KBytes       
[  5]   2.00-3.00   sec  2.75 MBytes  23.1 Mbits/sec    5    102 KBytes       
[  5]   3.00-4.00   sec  3.50 MBytes  29.3 Mbits/sec    0    126 KBytes       
[  5]   4.00-5.00   sec  4.50 MBytes  37.8 Mbits/sec    0    153 KBytes       
[  5]   5.00-6.00   sec  5.00 MBytes  41.9 Mbits/sec    0    175 KBytes       
[  5]   6.00-7.00   sec  5.38 MBytes  45.1 Mbits/sec   40   72.1 KBytes       
[  5]   7.00-8.00   sec  4.00 MBytes  33.6 Mbits/sec   44    116 KBytes       
[  5]   8.00-9.00   sec  1.88 MBytes  15.7 Mbits/sec   20   66.5 KBytes       
[  5]   9.00-10.00  sec  1.62 MBytes  13.6 Mbits/sec    0   76.4 KBytes       
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr
[  5]   0.00-10.00  sec  32.4 MBytes  27.2 Mbits/sec  119            sender
[  5]   0.00-10.24  sec  31.5 MBytes  25.8 Mbits/sec                  receiver

iperf Done.

Traceroute for illustration:

$ traceroute 192.168.178.X
traceroute to 192.168.178.X (192.168.178.X), 30 hops max, 60 byte packets
 1  192.168.178.X (192.168.178.X)  23.099 ms  23.041 ms  23.025 ms

Last edited by Werdck (2025-10-04 11:58:19)

seth · 2025-10-04 15:30:12

I have a dual boot of Windows 11, yes. It is used very rarely, and I can delete the partitions if that might solve my issue.

Bo, but see the 3rd link below. Mandatory.
Disable it (it's NOT the BIOS setting!) and reboot windows and linux twice for voodo reasons.

Then leave only

options iwlmvm power_scheme=1
options iwlwifi power_save=0

and remove the other options, you have a peak of 45 Mbps what's close to the 802.11g maximum

Werdck · 2025-10-06 14:13:39

Booted into Windows, executed

 powercfg /H off

and rebooted twice, followed by two reboots into linux.
The options are now as you wrote, after changing them I of course rebooted to be sure they are in effect.

Now my iperf looks worse for some reason:

$ iperf3 -c 192.168.178.X
Connecting to host 192.168.178.X, port 5201
[  5] local 192.168.178.Y port 56500 connected to 192.168.178.X port 5201
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr  Cwnd
[  5]   0.00-1.00   sec  4.50 MBytes  37.7 Mbits/sec    1    506 KBytes       
[  5]   1.00-2.00   sec  3.25 MBytes  27.3 Mbits/sec    0    506 KBytes       
[  5]   2.00-3.00   sec  3.12 MBytes  26.2 Mbits/sec    0    506 KBytes       
[  5]   3.00-4.00   sec  2.00 MBytes  16.8 Mbits/sec    0    506 KBytes       
[  5]   4.00-5.00   sec  2.25 MBytes  18.9 Mbits/sec    0    506 KBytes       
[  5]   5.00-6.00   sec  2.12 MBytes  17.8 Mbits/sec    0    506 KBytes       
[  5]   6.00-7.00   sec  3.12 MBytes  26.2 Mbits/sec    0    506 KBytes       
[  5]   7.00-8.00   sec  2.12 MBytes  17.8 Mbits/sec    0    506 KBytes       
[  5]   8.00-9.00   sec  1.00 MBytes  8.38 Mbits/sec    0    506 KBytes       
[  5]   9.00-10.00  sec  2.12 MBytes  17.8 Mbits/sec    0    506 KBytes       
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr
[  5]   0.00-10.00  sec  25.6 MBytes  21.5 Mbits/sec    1            sender
[  5]   0.00-10.17  sec  22.8 MBytes  18.8 Mbits/sec                  receiver

iperf Done.

And there are beacon losses and reconnects now:

$ journalctl -eu wpa_supplicant@wlan0
Okt 06 15:52:59 hostname systemd[1]: Started WPA supplicant daemon (for interface wlan0).
Okt 06 15:52:59 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: Successfully initialized wpa_supplicant
Okt 06 15:52:59 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-REGDOM-CHANGE init=DRIVER type=WORLD
Okt 06 15:52:59 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-REGDOM-CHANGE init=DRIVER type=WORLD
Okt 06 15:53:03 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: SME: Trying to authenticate with 78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1 (SSID='5' freq=5240 MHz)
Okt 06 15:53:03 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-REGDOM-CHANGE init=DRIVER type=COUNTRY alpha2=DE
Okt 06 15:53:03 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-REGDOM-CHANGE init=DRIVER type=COUNTRY alpha2=DE
Okt 06 15:53:03 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: Trying to associate with 78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1 (SSID='5' freq=5240 MHz)
Okt 06 15:53:03 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: Associated with 78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1
Okt 06 15:53:03 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-SUBNET-STATUS-UPDATE status=0
Okt 06 15:53:03 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: WPA: Key negotiation completed with 78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1 [PTK=CCMP GTK=CCMP]
Okt 06 15:53:03 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-CONNECTED - Connection to 78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1 completed [id=2 id_str=]
Okt 06 15:54:05 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-DISCONNECTED bssid=78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1 reason=4 locally_generated=1
Okt 06 15:54:05 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: Added BSSID 78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1 into ignore list, ignoring for 10 seconds
Okt 06 15:54:08 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: SME: Trying to authenticate with 78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1 (SSID='5' freq=5240 MHz)
Okt 06 15:54:08 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: Trying to associate with 78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1 (SSID='5' freq=5240 MHz)
Okt 06 15:54:08 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: Associated with 78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1
Okt 06 15:54:08 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-SUBNET-STATUS-UPDATE status=0
Okt 06 15:54:08 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: WPA: Key negotiation completed with 78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1 [PTK=CCMP GTK=CCMP]
Okt 06 15:54:08 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: Removed BSSID 78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1 from ignore list
Okt 06 15:54:08 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-CONNECTED - Connection to 78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1 completed [id=2 id_str=]
Okt 06 16:08:56 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-BEACON-LOSS
Okt 06 16:11:32 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-BEACON-LOSS

Last edited by Werdck (2025-10-06 14:25:07)

seth · 2025-10-06 20:18:44

Okt 06 15:54:05 hostname wpa_supplicant[1434]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-DISCONNECTED bssid=78:9a:18:dd:0c:e1 reason=4 locally_generated=1

reason=4 "Disassociated due to inactivity"

after ~1m
Throughput is still all over the place but the retries have gone down massively.

Can you try to connect it to some other AP (eg. a phone hotspot)?
Edit: mostly to see whether the connection remains stable.

Last edited by seth (2025-10-06 20:19:24)

Werdck · 2025-10-08 08:00:09

reason=4 "Disassociated due to inactivity"
after ~1m

Is that normal? I've never seen an inactivity disconnect that fast.

Can you try to connect it to some other AP?

Did that, this is a setup of two laptops running arch, about 50cm of space between them on the table.

# journalctl -b -eu wpa_supplicant@wlan0
Okt 08 08:37:45 hostname systemd[1]: Started WPA supplicant daemon (for interface wlan0).
Okt 08 08:37:45 hostname wpa_supplicant[1574]: Successfully initialized wpa_supplicant
Okt 08 08:37:45 hostname wpa_supplicant[1574]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-REGDOM-CHANGE init=DRIVER type=WORLD
Okt 08 08:37:45 hostname wpa_supplicant[1574]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-REGDOM-CHANGE init=DRIVER type=WORLD
Okt 08 08:37:49 hostname wpa_supplicant[1574]: wlan0: SME: Trying to authenticate with <MAC> (SSID='TEST' freq=2412 MHz)
Okt 08 08:37:49 hostname wpa_supplicant[1574]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-REGDOM-CHANGE init=DRIVER type=COUNTRY alpha2=DE
Okt 08 08:37:49 hostname wpa_supplicant[1574]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-REGDOM-CHANGE init=DRIVER type=COUNTRY alpha2=DE
Okt 08 08:37:49 hostname wpa_supplicant[1574]: wlan0: Trying to associate with <MAC> (SSID='TEST' freq=2412 MHz)
Okt 08 08:37:49 hostname wpa_supplicant[1574]: wlan0: Associated with <MAC>
Okt 08 08:37:49 hostname wpa_supplicant[1574]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-SUBNET-STATUS-UPDATE status=0
Okt 08 08:37:49 hostname wpa_supplicant[1574]: wlan0: WPA: Key negotiation completed with <MAC> [PTK=CCMP GTK=CCMP]
Okt 08 08:37:49 hostname wpa_supplicant[1574]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-CONNECTED - Connection to <MAC> completed [id=2 id_str=]

# iperf -c 192.168.12.1
Connecting to host 192.168.12.1, port 5201
[  5] local 192.168.12.2 port 39656 connected to 192.168.12.1 port 5201

[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr  Cwnd
[  5]   0.00-1.00   sec  2.25 MBytes  18.9 Mbits/sec    0    116 KBytes       
[  5]   1.00-2.00   sec  2.12 MBytes  17.8 Mbits/sec    0    177 KBytes       
[  5]   2.00-3.00   sec  1.88 MBytes  15.7 Mbits/sec    0    177 KBytes       
[  5]   3.00-4.00   sec  2.25 MBytes  18.9 Mbits/sec    0    177 KBytes       
[  5]   4.00-5.00   sec  1.75 MBytes  14.7 Mbits/sec    0    177 KBytes       
[  5]   5.00-6.00   sec  1.88 MBytes  15.7 Mbits/sec    0    177 KBytes       
[  5]   6.00-7.00   sec  2.25 MBytes  18.9 Mbits/sec    0    177 KBytes       
[  5]   7.00-8.00   sec  1.88 MBytes  15.7 Mbits/sec    0    177 KBytes       
[  5]   8.00-9.00   sec  1.50 MBytes  12.6 Mbits/sec    0    177 KBytes       
[  5]   9.00-10.00  sec  1.50 MBytes  12.6 Mbits/sec    0    177 KBytes       
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr
[  5]   0.00-10.00  sec  19.2 MBytes  16.1 Mbits/sec    0            sender
[  5]   0.00-10.05  sec  18.2 MBytes  15.2 Mbits/sec                  receiver

iperf Done.

Seems stable. The speeds can be explained (I think) by the AP using a cheap rtl8192eu USB-NIC.
That NIC is also not capable of 5GHz, therefore I have no range issues.

Using a phone hotspot for 5GHz.
Directly next to the phone:

$ iperf3 -c 192.168.195.62
Connecting to host 192.168.195.62, port 5201
[  5] local 192.168.195.68 port 51736 connected to 192.168.195.62 port 5201
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr  Cwnd
[  5]   0.00-1.00   sec  39.6 MBytes   332 Mbits/sec    0   1.29 MBytes       
[  5]   1.00-2.00   sec  41.5 MBytes   348 Mbits/sec    0   1.73 MBytes       
[  5]   2.00-3.00   sec  41.2 MBytes   346 Mbits/sec    0   1.92 MBytes       
[  5]   3.00-4.00   sec  40.9 MBytes   343 Mbits/sec    0   2.01 MBytes       
[  5]   4.00-5.00   sec  42.0 MBytes   353 Mbits/sec    0   2.01 MBytes       
[  5]   5.00-6.00   sec  40.9 MBytes   343 Mbits/sec    0   2.13 MBytes       
[  5]   6.00-7.00   sec  42.1 MBytes   353 Mbits/sec    0   2.37 MBytes       
[  5]   7.00-8.00   sec  41.4 MBytes   347 Mbits/sec    0   2.37 MBytes       
[  5]   8.00-9.00   sec  41.5 MBytes   348 Mbits/sec    0   2.37 MBytes       
[  5]   9.00-10.00  sec  40.1 MBytes   336 Mbits/sec    0   2.37 MBytes       
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr
[  5]   0.00-10.00  sec   411 MBytes   345 Mbits/sec    0            sender
[  5]   0.00-10.01  sec   408 MBytes   342 Mbits/sec                  receiver

iperf Done.

Around six meters away:

iperf3 -c 192.168.195.62
Connecting to host 192.168.195.62, port 5201
[  5] local 192.168.195.68 port 51142 connected to 192.168.195.62 port 5201
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr  Cwnd
[  5]   0.00-1.00   sec   384 KBytes  3.14 Mbits/sec    1   43.8 KBytes       
[  5]   1.00-2.00   sec   128 KBytes  1.05 Mbits/sec    1   12.7 KBytes       
[  5]   2.00-3.00   sec  0.00 Bytes  0.00 bits/sec    0   12.7 KBytes       
[  5]   3.00-4.00   sec   128 KBytes  1.05 Mbits/sec    9   5.66 KBytes       
[  5]   4.00-5.00   sec  0.00 Bytes  0.00 bits/sec    0   17.0 KBytes       
[  5]   5.00-6.00   sec   128 KBytes  1.05 Mbits/sec    0   29.7 KBytes       
[  5]   6.00-7.00   sec  0.00 Bytes  0.00 bits/sec    0   29.7 KBytes       
[  5]   7.00-8.00   sec  0.00 Bytes  0.00 bits/sec    6   19.8 KBytes       
[  5]   8.00-9.00   sec   128 KBytes  1.05 Mbits/sec    0   26.9 KBytes       
[  5]   9.00-10.00  sec   256 KBytes  2.10 Mbits/sec    1   24.0 KBytes       
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr
[  5]   0.00-10.00  sec  1.12 MBytes   944 Kbits/sec   18            sender
[  5]   0.00-9.98   sec   896 KBytes   735 Kbits/sec                  receiver

iperf Done.

Journal of the whole phone hotspot trial:

Okt 08 09:26:09 hostname wpa_supplicant[5511]: Successfully initialized wpa_supplicant
Okt 08 09:26:10 hostname wpa_supplicant[5511]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-REGDOM-CHANGE init=DRIVER type=WORLD
Okt 08 09:26:10 hostname wpa_supplicant[5511]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-REGDOM-CHANGE init=DRIVER type=WORLD
Okt 08 09:26:13 hostname wpa_supplicant[5511]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-REGDOM-CHANGE init=DRIVER type=COUNTRY alpha2=DE
Okt 08 09:26:13 hostname wpa_supplicant[5511]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-REGDOM-CHANGE init=DRIVER type=COUNTRY alpha2=DE
Okt 08 09:27:00 hostname wpa_supplicant[5511]: wlan0: SME: Trying to authenticate with <MAC> (SSID='Ley' freq=5745 MHz)
Okt 08 09:27:00 hostname wpa_supplicant[5511]: wlan0: Trying to associate with <MAC> (SSID='Ley' freq=5745 MHz)
Okt 08 09:27:00 hostname wpa_supplicant[5511]: wlan0: Associated with <MAC>
Okt 08 09:27:00 hostname wpa_supplicant[5511]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-SUBNET-STATUS-UPDATE status=0
Okt 08 09:27:00 hostname wpa_supplicant[5511]: wlan0: WPA: Key negotiation completed with <MAC> [PTK=CCMP GTK=CCMP]
Okt 08 09:27:00 hostname wpa_supplicant[5511]: wlan0: CTRL-EVENT-CONNECTED - Connection to <MAC> completed [id=1 id_str=]

Seems disconnects are not the issue, but the connection is still effectively dead some meters away?

seth · 2025-10-08 14:31:56

Is that normal? I've never seen an inactivity disconnect that fast.

"aggressive", the AP can take its ball and go home whenever it feels like, but if this isn't in response to beacon losses it's more likely that the AP is confused™ about the connection (pending lease parallel from parallel windows boot)

Around six meters away:

On sight? Are there any walls inbetween?
Or are there many other 5GHz networks in range (neighbors)?
Jammers (is this in a hospital or other environments where'd you expect signals to be suppressed)?

Is this the same condition as w/ the original AP?
Can you get closer to that one?

Edit: is this a notebook or a NUK/Desktop where you forgot to attach the external antenna?

Last edited by seth (2025-10-08 14:33:47)

Werdck · 2025-10-08 19:26:52

lease parallel from parallel windows boot

The installed Windows does not have wifi connectivity, I used Ethernet the one time it was needed.

is this a notebook or a NUK/Desktop where you forgot to attach the external antenna?

It is a laptop, the internal antenna is connected. I checked that first, low hanging fruit(tm) and all that.

Are there any walls inbetween?

There is one wall in the line of sight, but not made of reinforced concrete or anything like that.

Or are there many other 5GHz networks in range (neighbors)?

There are ten other networks around, but I tested with an AP with only one far away neighbor too, with the same result.

Jammers?

Unlikely, residential area on the edge of a town in both cases. Other devices also don't have the problems.

Is this the same condition as w/ the original AP?

Almost, yes.

Can you get closer to that one?

At around two meters the connection is as strong as I would expect.

Just getting closer or reducing obstructions in the line of sight are helping massively, but those are not solutions.
I want to be able to take my laptop to a place and just connect to wifi, as is possible with every other device I have.
Not wizardry, of course, but one ore two drywall walls should not block me from using my laptop. Certainly doesn't have a measurable impact on my phone and two PCs in different parts of the flat, even when they are considerably farther away.

Maybe I should check wifi speeds in windows, just to make sure I'm not trying to fix a hardware problem with software...

Last edited by Werdck (2025-10-08 19:28:05)

seth · 2025-10-08 19:46:32

The installed Windows does not have wifi connectivity

Regardless see the 3rd link below. Mandatory.
Disable it (it's NOT the BIOS setting!) and reboot windows and linux twice for voodo reasons.

There is one wall in the line of sight, but not made of reinforced concrete or anything like that.

Can you test the distance behavior on a clear line? Maybe it's stuffed w/ asbestos

Almost, yes.

Incl. that wall?

Maybe I should check wifi speeds in windows, just to make sure I'm not trying to fix a hardware problem with software...

Possibly.
If it's not the asbestos, increase the tx power of the NIC (as much as possible)

Certainly doesn't have a measurable impact on my phone and two PCs in different parts of the flat

Have you tried turning the notebook
a) so the antenna faces the AP
b)90° on the X or Y axis (ie. operate it upright, careful if there's a spinning disk inside!)

Werdck · 2025-10-08 20:21:26

Disable it

Done some posts above. Windows Quick-start-hibernate-shenanigans are off.

Maybe it's stuffed w/ asbestos

Unlikely, the house is too new for asbestos and I have drilled multiple holes through walls here already.
And why would someone stuff an inside wall with asbestos?

Can you test the distance behavior on a clear line?

Clear line has almost no loss over approximately 10 meters, but as soon as I move behind any wall, it becomes abysmal instantly.
Your "insulating wall" theory might have a point after all...

Incl. that wall?

Yes. The phone was on a table, my AP is 1,5m above that. The phone's signal went through the wall next to the door, the AP's goes above the door.

Have you tried turning the notebook
a) so the antenna faces the AP
b)90° on the X or Y axis (ie. operate it upright, careful if there's a spinning disk inside!)

a) yes. The antenna goes around the display, so I had it in many angles to the AP.
b) not turned 90° up yet, the rest yes

seth · 2025-10-08 20:37:11

And why would someone stuff an inside wall with asbestos?

Fire containment. This was actually fairly common security practice.

as soon as I move behind any wall

How random is that "any"?
5GHz is way more sensitive to substance interference (it might actually just be an aluminium mesh, also fuck you, autocorrect, there's an extra-i in aluminium)
2.4GHz should™ not nearly be as affected and actually just switching channels might help (depending on what's actually radio shielding there)
The phones operate on the same 5GHz channel from about the same location as the notebook and are not affected at all by wall and door and asbestos?

The phone's signal went through the wall next to the door, the AP's goes above the door.

The door has also no influence on the signal condition either? (Ie. doesn't matter whether it's open or closed and you actually get a clear line)

Werdck · 2025-10-08 20:38:44

Tested on Windows. Same issues. Seems the laptop is just genuine garbage when it comes to wifi.
Meaning there will probably be nothing I can do to fix this, except the usual keeping away from cover and staying as close to the AP as possible.

Werdck · 2025-10-08 20:46:06

Fire containment

Ah right, I forgot that was also one of the uses of wonderful asbestos, besides insulation...

How random is that "any"?

It literally is any wall around the AP, or rather between phone and laptop when I tested. Even 1m away from the phone's hotspot, as soon as there is a wall in the line of sight it's game over (300 Mbps -> 10 Mbps).

2.4GHz should™ not nearly be as affected

After applying the options regarding power saving, 2.4GHz is almost pristine, good coverage everywhere.

The phones operate on the same 5GHz channel from about the same location as the notebook and are not affected at all by wall and door and asbestos?

Yes, same AP therefore same channel, and directly next to the laptop. My phone is affected, but not nearly as much.

The door has also no influence on the signal condition either?

I had the door open during all the tests, line of sight never went through it.

seth · 2025-10-08 21:10:21

It literally is any wall around the AP, or rather between phone and laptop when I tested.

If you've the opportunity, test some guaranteed old wall (wood + cardboard - or loam) and also to shift the 5GHz channel.
The drastic drop suggests some shielding.
Modern drywalls often have aluminium frames and are stuffed w/ noise-proof stuffings that's totally not asbestos, either could be an explicit problem for very particular wavelengths.

Please always remember to mark resolved threads by editing your initial posts subject - so others will know that there's no task left, but maybe a solution to find.
Thanks.

Arch Linux

#1 2025-10-02 10:17:05

[Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#2 2025-10-02 18:57:44

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#3 2025-10-03 17:06:07

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#4 2025-10-03 18:51:01

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#5 2025-10-04 10:54:01

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#6 2025-10-04 15:30:12

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

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Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#8 2025-10-06 20:18:44

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#9 2025-10-08 08:00:09

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

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Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#11 2025-10-08 19:26:52

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#12 2025-10-08 19:46:32

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

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Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#14 2025-10-08 20:37:11

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#15 2025-10-08 20:38:44

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#16 2025-10-08 20:46:06

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

#17 2025-10-08 21:10:21

Re: [Solved] [HW] Very short range and low speeds with Intel AC 9260 chip

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